Title:Faire Eve
Author:Catherine Stovall
Genre:YA Fantasy
Formats
Available In:All eBook formats and Print
Blurb:Under the watchful eye of her over protective mother, Eve grew up
in a world without magic and fancy. She never cared about riding a unicorn,
dancing at balls or being a princess. Now, all the things she never desired are
hers and every other girl's dream is her nightmare"
The Sidhe ruled over fairy magic from the twilight city, Trig Na nOg, until a beast cast a dark spell to send them into a death-like sleep. In an attempt to reap revenge on the fairy people, Tiritchiq hunts Eve and her entourage as they campaign to place the halfling princess on the throne.
In order to save the world of Evalon and a family she has never known, Eve travels through dimensions, crosses dangerous landscapes, and learns to accept the Sidhe blood within. With the moody and handsome Daione Warrior Eldon by her side, she must embrace the darkness inside of her and face down a powerful foe.
The Sidhe ruled over fairy magic from the twilight city, Trig Na nOg, until a beast cast a dark spell to send them into a death-like sleep. In an attempt to reap revenge on the fairy people, Tiritchiq hunts Eve and her entourage as they campaign to place the halfling princess on the throne.
In order to save the world of Evalon and a family she has never known, Eve travels through dimensions, crosses dangerous landscapes, and learns to accept the Sidhe blood within. With the moody and handsome Daione Warrior Eldon by her side, she must embrace the darkness inside of her and face down a powerful foe.
Excerpt:
She looked like the apparition of a goddess as she
walked across the blood soaked ground. Without seeing, she managed to glide
effortlessly over the deep gouges in the earth where the dragon’s claws had dug
ravines in the streets. Eldon wanted to go to her, but something inside told
him to wait and be cautious. The girl was not his Eve. The fairy queen replaced
the broken child as she went to kneel beside the Ki’Lin mare and her mate.
Bright
tears rolled down Eve’s cheeks as she laid a comforting hand on the mare’s
withers. To the group’s astonishment, the mare turned to Eve and nuzzled the
girl with her nose for a brief second. Eldon made a move to go to Eve,
intending to pull her away but something in the tenderness of the moment
stopped him. No other creature would have been able to approach the grieving
Ki’Lin and yet, the mare seemed to welcome her.
Eve
knelt beside Jayno for a moment, crying openly, as if she too, felt the
cavernous rip in his mate’s heart. A shadow passed over her face and she hesitated.
Rising to her feet, she turned away from the fallen unicorn and walked a few
yards away to where the heart of the battle had taken place. Eldon stepped
forward, willing her into his arms so that he could comfort her. When he looked
into her eyes, he froze.
Her
eyes were empty of all recognition or want. They shined as brightly as they had
moments before the dragon had come but something in them lay listless and
dormant. Not seeing the others, Eve continued blindly until she stood above the
place where Eldon had struck out at the dragon. A small pool of black blood
steamed at her feet. Unaware of the dangers to herself, Eve knelt and plunged
her hand into the sticky fluid.
Outside,
her body was numb. Eve did not feel the terrible heat from the dragon’s blood
blistering her hand. She did not smell the scorching of her own flesh. Inside,
she was not in control of her own mind. She acted on magical instincts and
thousand-year-old knowledge passed down through her royal line that she did not
understand. She was still partially lost inside the dragon’s spell.
No
one moved to stop her or help her. Most of the onlookers trembled in fear. Even
Eldon’s men, soldiers and great warriors, found themselves frightened by their
queen. Unblinking and moving with a strange stiffness, Eve rejoined the fallen
Ki’Lin and his mate once more. The mare snorted and pawed at the ground in
trepidation but did not move to intervene with Eve’s task.
Eve
knelt by Jayno. Her voice rose in an eerie sonata that filled the streets and
echoed in the silence. She sang an ancient hymn with no recognizable origins.
The melody was timeless and the words foreign. A power began to build around
her. The skin of her hand burned and cracked under the heat of the dragon’s
blood.
At
last, Eve was silent and she placed her bloody hand on the unicorn’s ice
sheathed horn. The mare neighed in protest and reared back on her powerful
hindquarters. To touch the horn of a living Ki’Lin was taboo unless the
creature offered the privilege. To touch the horn of a dying Ki’Lin was
sacrilege. Eve’s head twisted towards the mare but no fear showed in her eyes.
When she spoke, her voice was
quiet but the tone raised the hairs on the back of the others’ necks, “Calm
down, Kellan.”
The
Ki’Lin mare stumbled and her powerful hooves came crashing down inches from
where Eve sat. Eve did not flinch. As Kellan lowered her head and gazed
intently at Eve, the girl returned her focus to Jayno. She held his horn in her
burned and gore-covered hand as gently as cradling an infant’s head. She
whispered words no other could hear and the ice began to melt.
Eve’s
body shook with pain and power. Her eyes blurred with tears. She was a ghost
inside herself, watching as her own injured and matted hand held strongly to
the horn. She felt a strange and nameless sensation creeping through her body.
Icy fingers trailed along her spine, followed by the gentle lapping of a
candle’s flame.
She
heard herself cry out but her voice sounded miles away. A ripping sound echoed
in her ears and she felt as if a dull knife had filleted her shoulder blades.
She felt her body arch in response to what must have been pain, but the
recesses of her mind closed the physical sensation off from her. She knew she
was hurt but could no longer remember what the perception of pain felt like.
About Catherine Stovall:
Catherine Stovall is the author of Faire
Eve, The Requiem of Humanity Series, Fearful Day, Sweet Sally Slasher, and
Bloody Freedom. Stovall is a member of the International Thriller Writers and
the creator of International Bug Your Library Day, an operation to spread
awareness for Indie and Small Press Authors.
Catherine is a fearless creature who surrounds herself with the joys of life both in and out of her fictional worlds. She lives in Southeast Missouri with her husband, three children, and pets. When not writing, she spends her time riding motorcycles, wearing elaborate hats, and genuinely enjoying the oddities in life.
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